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Malian Sports persons commonly belong to the games of basketball, football or lawn tennis. Malians are world famous for their basketball skills. Some Malian sports persons are even exported to USA and other countries for their skills and strength.
Football is one of the most popular and well known games of Mali. Mahamadou Diarra is the captain of the Mali National Football team. He has played for renowned clubs like CSK Bamako, OFI Crete, Vitesse Arnhem and Olympique Lyonnais. He ranked third in the FIFA World Youth Championship of 1999 in the under 20 Mali team.
Dramane Traore is another famous Malian footballer. He played as a part of the Malian 2004 Olympic football team, finishing top of Group A. Dijmi Traore is a superb French born Malian football player, who is an extremely skilled left back or a center back player. He has played for famous clubs like Liverpool, Portsmouth club and Lens.
Basket ball ranks second among the favorite Malian games. Mobido Niakate is a famous basketball player. He has earned several honors for the national basketball team. Namory Diarra of Stade Milan, Diara, and Samake ranks among the top basket ball players of Mali. Maiga, Sininta, Sissoko, Toure, Damba are well known players of national women's basket ball team.
Lawn Tennis is another field which has produced a pool of talents. The Mali National Davis Cup Team has produced some promising stars like Yaya Traore, Madou Keita, Amadou Diallo and Diaquely Dittamba Samassa. Veteran players like Diaquely Dittamba Smassa and Madou Keita had won many single matches. These players have given their best in 2001 Davis Cup results finishing second in Pool B of Europe/Africa Group IV.
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